4068 British Association. 



Section D. — Zoology and Botany, including Physiology. C. C. Babington, Esq., 

 President. The following papers were read : — 



" Notices of some Living Aquatic Birds at Santry House, near Dublin," by W. C. 

 Doraville. This paper consisted of a list of birds, also of those which were desiderata 

 in the collection. Mr. Allis, of York, observed that the collection contained no birds 

 of great rarity. 



" On some Discoveries relative to the Chick in Ovo, and its Liberation from the 

 Shell," by Dr. Horner. 



" Notice of the Reproduction of the Lower Extremities in a Warm-blooded Ani- 

 mal," by Mr. Allis. The case was that of a common song-thrush. In November, 



1851, it moulted, and had every appearance of dying ; was reduced to a skeleton and 

 unable to walk ; it lay on its back for six weeks, being fed by hand with raw beef, and 

 occasionally with beef-tea and biscuit; early in 1852 an unusual protuberance ap- 

 peared at the bottom and in front of the tibia above the ankle-joint; from these pro- 

 tuberances perfect tarsi and toes were developed, which came to maturity in about 

 three weeks ; this annoyed the bird greatly, and he destroyed the newly-formed mem- 

 bers with his beak and by friction on the perch. He moulted again in September, 



1852, and in November he lost his original tarsi, and new ones were produced; in Ja- 

 nuary last fresh tarsi were again produced ; these displaced those formed in November 

 from articulation with the tibia, and the displaced tarsi are now visibly located on the 

 upper edge of those produced in January last, which latter differ greatly from the nor- 

 mal form, being larger and flatter, and bearing a resemblance to the tarsi of aquatic 

 birds ; they have feeble though perfectly developed toes, which are sufficient for the 

 purpose of locomotion, and to enable the bird to perch. The living bird, showing the 

 one pair of tarsi overlying these subsequently produced, was exhibited to the Section 

 by Mr. II. Cook, of York, its owner. 



Mr. A Strickland referred to an instance of additional feet growing from the fet- 

 locks of a mare. Prof. Allman referred to the well-known fact of persons with super- 

 numerary fingers as analogous to this case. Dr. Redfern regarded the production not 

 as an extra limb, but as a substitute for one that was lost. Dr. Lankester pointed out 

 the fact of its occurring after a diseased condition, as placing the feet in quite a diffe- 

 rent relation to the cases related, — which were congenital, and not a new or acquired 

 organic action. 



" On the Utricular Structure of the Endochrome in a Species of Conferva," by 

 Prof. Allman. The plant which constituted the subject of the communication, is 

 closely allied to Conferva Lin um, and the author showed that the deep green endo- 

 chrome, when liberated from the cell, is seen to possess a very definite utricular struc- 

 ture. Each utricle is filled with homogeneous green matter, which surrounds one or 

 more peculiarly formed starch-granules. In many instances, utricles were met with 

 of a large size, and filled with a brood of secondary utricles, each containing homoge- 

 neous green contents, surrounding a nucleus-like starch-granule. 



A long discussion followed the reading of this paper, which ultimately turned upon 

 the distinctions existing between the animal and the vegetable kingdoms. Dr. Red- 

 fern dwelt on the importance of recognizing the function of cell-contents, as well as 

 of cell-walls. Physiologists were too prone to recognize the cell-wall, to the exclusion 

 of what it contained. Dr. Walker-Arnott stated that he had recently heard that starch 

 had been found in the Medusae. If this were the case, the existence of starch could 

 be no longer claimed as characteristic of the vegetable kingdom. Prof. Allman agreed 



